Arsenal football star, Hector Bellerin has called out West’s double standards following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, saying such incidents in the past were completely ignored. Bellerin stated that the lack of empathy towards other nations being dragged into war is ‘racist’ as they did not get the same attention as the ongoing crisis.
The 27-year old said that the world turned a blind eye towards various conflicts around the world including the ones in Palestine, Iraq, and Yemen but they have raised their voices when a European country has been invaded.
“I find it pretty grim seeing how we’ve been so interested in this war, but there were others that we didn’t bother with,” Bellerin stated.
“I don’t know if it’s because it could affect us more economically or in terms of refugees, but the war in Palestine has been silenced and nobody has talked about it. It happens in Palestine, Yemen, Iraq… now we’re deciding whether Russia will play in the World Cup or not. In the end, these are things that other countries have been doing for many years,” he added.
Russia has been banned from participating in the upcoming 2022 FIFA World Cup in Qatar while their football clubs have also been barred from taking part in any European competitions. The war has also led to bans in various sports for Russia.
